President Trump’s first proposed budget was released on Thursday, and recommends maddening cuts to programs and agencies responsible for ensuring the health of Americans and for understanding and combating climate change. Among larger U.S. agencies, the biggest cuts come to the EPA, which would see its $8.1 billion budget slashed by over 31%, and layoffs hitting about 3,200 of the agency’s 15,000 workers. This would be the biggest cut in EPA since the 35% reduction that the agency endured in 1981, the first year of the Reagan presidency. The EPA’s budget peaked in 2010, at $10.3 billion. The proposed EPA budget eliminates funding for the Clean Power Plan—America’s chief effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement—and cuts international climate change programs, climate change research, and partnership programs, at a savings of over $100 million. Other cuts include:

$330 million to the Superfund toxic clean-up program (30% cut)$129 million cut to enforcement efforts (24% cut)$233 million cut to research and development (47% cut)$300 million cut to Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (100% cut)$73 million cut to Chesapeake Bay restoration (100% cut)Energy Star energy efficiency program (100% cut)

Figure 1. The proposed cuts to the EPA do not reflect public sentiment; Americans support the EPA’s efforts to protect clean air, clean water, and the environment. A January 2017 poll by Reuters found that 39 percent of Americans would like to see the EPA "strengthened or expanded," 22 percent wanted it to "remain the same," and just 19 percent said they would like to see the agency "weakened or eliminated.” The rest said they "don't know." Image credit: John Mashey, desmogblog.com.

NASA climate science and education receive a major hitNASA climate change and education programs have significant proposed cuts. Total elimination of the $115 million Office of Eduction was proposed, which includes camps and enrichment programs, internships and scholarships for young scientists, and support for women and underrepresented minorities in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields. NASA’s Earth-science budget received a $102 million cut—5 percent of the program’s annual budget, including money for four satellites intended to study climate change:

PACE, intended to better understand how aerosol particles and clouds influence climate changeOrbiting Carbon ­Observatory (OCO-3)Deep Space Climate Observatory, which will no longer use its Earth-facing cameras to monitor ozone, deforestation, and weatherCLARREO Pathfinder, which measures heat in Earth’s atmosphere

State Department cuts target Paris Climate Agreement promisesA significant commitment was made by the U.S. as part of the 2015 Paris Climate Accord: a $3 billion contribution to the Green Climate Fund, which assists developing countries in adaptation and mitigation practices to counter climate change. Obama already sent $1 billion of this promised amount, but Trump’s budget cuts the other $2 billion. Other nations may significantly scale back their commitments to cut greenhouse gas emission after seeing the U.S. renege on its Paris Climate Agreement promises.

Department of Energy sees clean energy cutsTrump is proposing a 5.6 percent cut to the Department of Energy, including a sharp 17.9 percent cut to core energy and science programs intended to accelerate the transition to new clean energy technologies.

NOAA weather programs escape the axThe proposed budget for NOAA does not have major cuts to weather programs, although grants and programs supporting coastal and marine management, research, and education—including Sea Grant, which helps coastal communities adapt to a climate change—are entirely eliminated. Here is what the proposed budget had to say about NOAA:

• Zeroes out over $250 million in targeted National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) grants and programs supporting coastal and marine management, research, and education including Sea Grant, which primarily benefit industry and state and local stakeholders. These programs are a lower priority than core functions maintained in the budget such as surveys, charting, and fisheries management.

• Maintains the development of NOAA’s current generation of polar orbiting and geostationary weather satellites, allowing the Joint Polar Satellite System and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite programs to remain on schedule in order to provide forecasters with critical weather data to help protect life and property.

• Achieves annual savings from NOAA’s Polar Follow On satellite program from the current program of record by better rejecting [sic.] the actual risk of a gap in polar satellite coverage, and provides additional opportunities to improve robustness of the low earth orbit satellite architecture by expanding the utilization of commercially provided data to improve weather models.

• Maintains National Weather Service forecasting capabilities by investing more than $1 billion while continuing to promote efficient and effective operations.

Take action!At at time when we should be dramatically increasing our funding and commitment to combating and researching climate change, President Trump’s proposed budget moves us sharply in the opposite direction. In May, the White House will provide more specific line-by-line detail on the proposed cuts, and then it will be up to Congress to decide the final numbers. If you’re not in the 19% of Americans who believe EPA should have their budget cut, I encourage you to contact your House Representative and Senators to let them know that you want to see EPA’s budget held the same or increased.

Reader Comments

That's fine, because it's part of the P3 infrastructure goal. The EPA and CC research is NOT losing funds, they will be restructuring funds just like NASA has done.

A P3 (PPP) is a Public-Private Partnership where private companies and investors can contribute and get a nice kickback when the contract is complete. By doing this, our government can cut federal funding and lower taxes while at the same time increasing private funding and grow infrastructures much faster. As the P3 helps to support a federal agency and our government's share profits increase, then our government can pour more federal funds into the agency. Any optional projects can still be funded by a P3 on the side while other major projects are still being concentrated on. NASA has been doing this for years now, and the EPA is going to grow with the same concept. In fact, the EPA will be using additional agreements known as CBP3 (Community-Based Public-Private Partnerships) for extra incentives and public exposure.

You see, what you might not be aware of yet is Trump wants to do the same thing the UN has been doing. He wants to make sure the USA runs like the Corporate Technocracy it actually already is. This is a GOOD thing, folks! Since our monetary-driven economy is failing, this is the only logical thing left to hammer before we go completely BUST. If you can't see this fact, then I'm sorry your bubble hasn't been popped yet so you can see it.

If one side uses facts and logic but the other refuses to acknowledge either and willfully chooses ignorance and ideology, then you can't have a meaningful discussion. Facts vs. "alternative facts".

The downfall of democracy is apathy and ignorance. Both have taken a firm grip in the US and Trump is the result.

In addition, you're assuming the country will still be here in a form that can swing back to the left. Remember "Lock Her Up!"? Do you see the demonization of the free press? The rise of the extreme right, not just here but worldwide? In an environment of social unrest things can change very fast.

That unrest, indeed a global phenomenon, may well continue to rise as climate detonation kicks in ever more. Much of it is already caused by it.

If one side uses facts and logic but the other refuses to acknowledge either and willfully chooses ignorance and ideology, then you can't have a meaningful discussion. Facts vs. "alternative facts".

The downfall of democracy is apathy and ignorance. Both have taken a firm grip in the US and Trump is the result.

In addition, you're assuming the country will still be here in a form that can swing back to the left. Remember "Lock Her Up!"? Do you see the demonization of the free press? The rise of the extreme right, not just here but worldwide? In an environment of social unrest things can change very fast.

Sometimes you have to negotiate, even when the negotiation is with an idiot. Logic should prevail, but does not always prevail . When both sides of a negotiation think the other side are idiots, both sides lose.

Regardless what happens with the proposed budget, what Trump did in broad daylight was make a big air kiss to the military, and show disdain for the citizenry. That seems kind of alarming, no matter what political leanings a citizen has.

66% of Democrats now worry a great deal, up nine points from 2016Independents are also more worried; Republicans are notGap between parties significantly wider than on other issues

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A landmark year in 2016 for global warming politics has further deepened the already formidable divide between Republicans and Democrats on the issue. Two-thirds (66%) of Democrats say they worry about global warming a great deal, compared with 18% of Republicans.

I believe the right is counting on that not letting up any time soon. The left keeps quoting the popular vote. California and New York can go 100% democratic next time and, unless something else changes, the left still loses the election, only by slightly less than a land slide. All the name calling and self-centered hate is what got us here, yet the left's answer is more of the same expecting a drastically different result next time. The country will swing left again, it always does after a near sweep by the right (or vice-versa) but with one, two or possibly even three conservative judges appointed before that happens, the congressional and presidential swing may be negated somewhat. Until we can all figure out how to discuss issues in a sincere way without demonizing each other, it is and shall remain a coin toss on how much damage each side can do. Time for a round table...

If one side uses facts and logic but the other refuses to acknowledge either and willfully chooses ignorance and ideology, then you can't have a meaningful discussion. Facts vs. "alternative facts".

The downfall of democracy is apathy and ignorance. Both have taken a firm grip in the US and Trump is the result.

In addition, you're assuming the country will still be here in a form that can swing back to the left. Remember "Lock Her Up!"? Do you see the demonization of the free press? The rise of the extreme right, not just here but worldwide? In an environment of social unrest things can change very fast.

Well, there's waste and there's waste, my friends. It's true that the multiplier or circulation effect of a bomb might be slower and longer than that of a bum (the bum will spend that money at a local store tomorrow, supporting local business, while the cost of the bomb needs to go through the employment manufacturing stage of spending, not to mention the fact that a bomb can get, y'know, blown up on foreign soil, materials lost forever and not even a storage job left to continue the cycle). But in most cases there are positive follow on effects of government spending. Stimulus, you might say. Everyone thought the Reagan boom was wonderful. It was built via massive DEFICIT SPENDING on the military. Huge jump in the national debt because of wild borrowing to finance big budget deficits each year. But, hey, the Eighties, man, the BOOM, everybody was rollin' in it, right? That was when the economy was going great...because of deficit spending.

Because the money being spent by the government in defense industries was going back into the economy. People were being given jobs and consumer demand grew. All that nonsense about "supply" driving the economy was indeed voodoo economics. The tax rate changes might have contributed to the consumer spending, but the real driver was the government's spending. I mean, a rich man can only own so many yachts. Poorer people having more, better paying middle class jobs because the government was keeping the tapS open on defense jobs everywhere, which then supported local communities, etc. People had money, they spent it.

Government spending per se, even a goodly amount of deficit spending, is not the problem. FOOLISH government spending on stuff that we don't really need (like more bombs), and not investing on important long-term things like education, health, environment and research, THAT is the problem.

Did California Figure Out How to Fix Global Warming?How the Golden State went green.

…Today, California can claim first place in just about every renewable-energy category: It is home to the nation’s largest wind farm and the world’s largest solar thermal plant. It has the largest operating photovoltaic solar installation on Earth and more rooftop solar than any other state. (It helps to have a lot of roofs.) This new industry has been an economic boon as well. Solar companies now employ an estimated 64,000 people in the state, surpassing the number of people working for all the major utilities. California has attracted more venture capital investment for clean-energy technologies than the European Union and China combined. Even the state’s manufacturing base is experiencing a boost; one of California’s largest factories is Tesla Motors’ sprawling electric-vehicle assembly plant in the Bay Area.

All of these advances have undercut a fundamental tenet of economics: that more growth equals more emissions. Between 2003 and 2013 (the most recent data), the Golden State decreased its greenhouse gas emissions by 5.5 percent while increasing its gross domestic product by 17 percent — and it did so under the thumb of the nation’s most stringent energy regulations.

Quoting 183. trunkmonkey: In an unrelated, but contemporary, event, Congress established the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970, at what may have been the dawn of the Watergate Era. According to the EPA website, the agency’s very first budget in Fiscal Year (FY) 1970 was just over $1 billion. In the ensuing years, the agency’s budget grew steadily until it exceeded $10 billion in FY 2010. That amounts to an average annual increase of about $225 million over 40 years. That growth in the EPA budget includes a very large increase from FY 2009 to FY 2010 of $2.65 billion, a one year increase of more than 10 times the annual average increase over 40 years, and about 35% over the FY 2009 budget.

Actually, the EPA is the product of an executive order signed by President Richard Nixon on December 2, 1970. Congress funds the EPA, but Congress did not create the EPA. Congress did ratify the executive order through committee hearings in both the House and the Senate. Just a bit of non trivial trivia.

Forget North Korea. The war will be against Iran. Note the why: today's shi'ite dominance in the Middle-East (including Syria, Irak) and since the region has to be kept in perpetual war (this yields US jobs, is the belief) you can see it coming easily.

A war with North Korea will be blocked by South Korea - they do not fancy a missile rain and (I should hope) dying for another Empire of Chaos was out there.

Good news the Budget wont pass because GOP knows this hits the red states the hardest who voted for Trump and they can't afford to lose their base

Bad news is Trump will try to start a war with North Korea to deflect from Russia to avoid impeachment

If Comey was truly led down a rabbit hole with Weiner/Clinton emails, we may just make it out of this alive

If not start stockpiling can goods as this country will go belly up

Happy Friday :)

Forget North Korea. The war will be against Iran. Note the why: today's shi'ite dominance in the Middle-East (including Syria, Irak) and since the region has to be kept in perpetual war (this yields US jobs, is the belief) you can see it coming easily.

A war with North Korea will be blocked by South Korea - they do not fancy a missile rain and (I should hope) dying for another Empire of Chaos war out there.

you criticize fake news, and then claim with no evidence, that hundreds if not thousands have left this site because they like you, are sick of leftist climate propaganda.

like president, like son.

politics has become first, because it is affecting the global populace in a way that has never been seen before. and because of that i agree with you and say, may god have mercy on us all.

can you not have at least a little empathy? and understand where all these crazy leftists are coming from? do you really think theyre posting all this climate stuff and worries about our environment to piss you off? you say this place has helped you understand the leftist point of you, but clearly you've learned NOTHING from it, and will be stuck in your current belief system until you die.

one of my favourite parts of being alive, is learning. gathering new information, and altering or altogether changing my belief system. whether it be something philosophical like religion, or something scientifically verifiable like how water vapour turns into cloud droplets. i feel sorry for you, that you seem to lack the ability to learn.

Quoting 199. earthisanocean:

you criticize fake news, and then claim with no evidence, that hundreds if not thousands have left this site because they like you, are sick of leftist climate propaganda.

like president, like son.

politics has become first, because it is affecting the global populace in a way that has never been seen before. and because of that i agree with you and say, may god have mercy on us all.

can you not have at least a little empathy? and understand where all these crazy leftists are coming from? do you really think theyre posting all this climate stuff and worries about our environment to piss you off? you say this place has helped you understand the leftist point of you, but clearly you've learned NOTHING from it, and will be stuck in your current belief system until you die.

one of my favourite parts of being alive, is learning. gathering new information, and altering or altogether changing my belief system. whether it be something philosophical like religion, or something scientifically verifiable like how water vapour turns into cloud droplets. i feel sorry for you, that you seem to lack the ability to learn.

Quoting 210. Neapolitan: Perhaps. But The United States consists of more than just the middle part. The fact is, Conservatives are in the minority here in the United States (that's why, for instance, millions more voted for Clinton than for Trump). And if it weren't for Russian influence in the election, along with FBI Director Comey's bizarre and baseless HRC email announcement, GOP-led voter suppression efforts, and hundreds of millions in untraceable corporate cash thanks to the travesty of the Citizens United decision, America simply wouldn't be in the terrible and terrifying predicament in which it now finds itself. The wild overreach from the unstable man baby with impulse control problems in the White House, coupled with the myopic complacency and incompetence of the do-nothing Congress, will practically ensure a quick left swing of the pendulum back towards reason, sanity, compassion, and patriotism for 2018 and beyond (unless, that is, anti-democratic efforts by the GOP are ratcheted up even further). America's only hope, really, is that its citizens will finally realize that their democracy has been stolen by those who simply don't have their best interests in mind, and do something about it. The press has been awakened, which can only help, and millions of citizens are being "woke". That's not going to let up any time soon.

I believe the right is counting on that not letting up any time soon. The left keeps quoting the popular vote. California and New York can go 100% democratic next time and, unless something else changes, the left still loses the election, only by slightly less than a land slide. All the name calling and self-centered hate is what got us here, yet the left's answer is more of the same expecting a drastically different result next time. The country will swing left again, it always does after a near sweep by the right (or vice-versa) but with one, two or possibly even three conservative judges appointed before that happens, the congressional and presidential swing may be negated somewhat. Until we can all figure out how to discuss issues in a sincere way without demonizing each other, it is and shall remain a coin toss on how much damage each side can do. Time for a round table...

Although the EPA budget is small in comparison to the total annual federal budget,2 the way the agency spends our tax dollars has an impact on all of us, including the people who own and run businesses subject to the EPA’s regulatory programs and jurisdiction. Following the money in the EPA’s budget gives us the “big picture” on how the agency uses the money. The proposed budget for FY 2011, totaling approximately $8.7 billion, would represent a decrease of approximately $1.6 billion from the FY 2010 budget;3 nevertheless, it still exceeds the FY 2009 spending level by over $1 billion.

Although a detailed analysis of the EPA’s budget is beyond the scope of this article, its use of tax dollars can be viewed on a broader scale. The EPA budget covers five environmental areas to be addressed in 2012 with taxpayer money. A breakdown of the areas, with percentage of budget and approximate dollar amounts is:

By far, the greatest share of EPA spending is focused on EPA’s efforts to maintain and improve the quality of our nation’s waters, followed by environmental cleanups and air quality programs, including climate change. Enforcement of environmental laws places fourth on the list of budget expenditures, followed by chemical safety and pollutions prevention. This look at the EPA budget is the first in a series. In coming articles, we’ll look deeper at the EPA’s budget, and how their use of tax money impacts us. We’ll Follow the Money.

One common way to measure federal spending is to compare it to the size of the overall U.S. economy. That at least puts the level into context, helping account for population growth, inflation and other factors that affect spending. Here’s what the White House’s own budget documents show about spending as a percentage of the U.S. economy (gross domestic product):

The EPA serves an important purpose, but like many other agencies it has become a bloated, draconian, self-perpetuating monster accountable to no one. Time to rein it in for a good haircut. As for the reduction in climate change programs, we keep hearing that the "science is settled". Wouldn't it make sense then to scale down science budgets, or at least divert them to better use?

Just what, if the budget would get half its National Interest cuts, would the Dept. of Defense be defending?

Surely not PBS.

I figure if the werds of Sith Lord Steve Bannon is the admin creed, and motto.."deconstructing the Administrative State", the pillaging of the US National Institutions that keep the stability of the world intact, is going to be deleted, as evidenced by the silencing of the State Dept.

When tyranny becomes the Norm, the American Veteran will not stand idly by.

I think you are grossly underestimating middle America. The antics of the left awoke a sleeping giant in the 2016 election and President Trump was the result. If the far left continues with their current tactics, not only could Republicans grow in 2018, they could achieve a super majority 60 in the Senate. If the left reacts to that the way they are reacting now, President Trump not only could, but probably will get a second term. Couple all of this with one, two, or possibly even three conservative Supreme Court appointments and you've got yourself a conservative America for a generation or three. Maybe it's time to stop dismissing conservatives and start figuring out how to work with them just in case they are in charge for the foreseeable future.

Perhaps. But The United States consists of more than just the middle part. The fact is, Conservatives are in the minority here in the United States (that's why, for instance, millions more voted for Clinton than for Trump). And if it weren't for Russian influence in the election, along with FBI Director Comey's bizarre and baseless HRC email announcement, GOP-led voter suppression efforts, and hundreds of millions in untraceable corporate cash thanks to the travesty of the Citizens United decision, America simply wouldn't be in the terrible and terrifying predicament in which it now finds itself. The wild overreach from the unstable man baby with impulse control problems in the White House, coupled with the myopic complacency and incompetence of the do-nothing Congress, will practically ensure a quick left swing of the pendulum back towards reason, sanity, compassion, and patriotism for 2018 and beyond (unless, that is, anti-democratic efforts by the GOP are ratcheted up even further). America's only hope, really, is that its citizens will finally realize that their democracy has been stolen by those who simply don't have their best interests in mind, and do something about it. The press has been awakened, which can only help, and millions of citizens are being "woke". That's not going to let up any time soon.

Quoting 180. weathermanwannabe: Good Morning. I am blogging from my Mother in Laws house in South Florida and had to make this comment before moving on to the weekend with the parents and family. I was utterly shocked last night with two "real" news items that I saw. Secretary of State Tillerson has gone on two trips abroad now and has failed to drop by the local embassy to meet and greet the US Embassy staff which is customary. And the bombshell from the WH Budget Office person trying to sell the current budget; when the reporter asked about climate change research, he stated from the podium that "we are not spending your tax dollars and funding that anymore". And couple that with open disdain for the Court system and Judges and for the Free Press which are actually written into the US Constitution as being cornerstones of our Democracy.

Someone on here mentioned issues with regard to leftist ideas; to tell you the truth, many of the things I am starting to see at the moment smell like a Communist dictatorship..........................See you next week

A small point of clarification. Not communist. Fascists. Fascism combines business and state (and military eventually). This allows for the consolidation of all critical functions under the executive. An early example of this was Mussolini's Italy.

The current form is more appropriately called neo-fascism, which still carries a lot of the original ideology with a few modern twists thrown in.

Fortunately, it seems most Americans aren't buying it, including those who work in the White House judging by the river of leaks that continue to pour out of it.

More on topic, the backlash this budget is generating pretty much guarantees there's no way it will pass in it's current form. If it does eek through due to the psychopaths we have running the country, then I would imagine at least one group would be more than happy to take the government to court over gross negligence, public endangerment, etc.

Quoting 204. KEEPEROFTHEGATE: abusers they use the system for free ride I see it too its the truth I have no problem with people needing help it happens but its to only be help and you are to get a job and look after yourself not live off it no follow up no investigations to make sure things really are what they say I call em scammers

Great. Show me the economy that provides everyone with a job. This done, we shall talk about what jobs, actually. The DDR had 100% employment, arrived at for instance by having half of the population spy on the other half. Et cetera.

abusers they use the system for free ride I see it too its the truth I have no problem with people needing help it happens but its to only be help and you are to get a job and look after yourself not live off it no follow up no investigations to make sure things really are what they say I call em scammers